Sudanese cities engulfed by fresh wave of protests

By Mohammed Amin

KHARTOUM (AA) - A fresh wave of protests erupted in Khartoum and other Sudanese cities on Friday, despite an ongoing arrest campaign by security forces.

Protesters emerged from the country’s mosques after Friday prayers chanting anti-government slogans and demanding the resignation of President Omar al-Bashir, eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency.

For the first time, Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi, a prominent opposition leader and a former prime minister, joined the demonstrations in Omdurman, Sudan’s second largest city.

“We’re seeing large protests in Omdurman led by former PM Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi,” one witness reported.

“Police are using teargas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds, so the protest was broken up after only one hour," the witness, speaking to Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity, added.

Opposition sources said earlier Friday that “dozens” of demonstrators had been arrested since Thursday evening.

Protests began in Sudan on Dec. 19 in 14 of the country’s 18 states, including Khartoum State.

Demonstrators decry rampant inflation and the government’s failure to remedy acute commodity shortages.

Al-Bashir, who has been in power since 1989, pledged Monday to carry out economic reforms amid ongoing calls by the opposition to protest.

A nation of 40 million, Sudan has struggled to recover from the loss of three quarters of its oil output -- its main source of foreign currency -- when South Sudan seceded in 2011.